Gossip

And here is something we have not seen in a while: a rock band causing controversy. And the reason: 1/3 of the band consists of Beth Ditto. The singer has a personality blowing the Paris Hiltons of this world completely out of the water. In 2006 the British magazine NME even bombarded her ‘coolest person on the planet’. After all, she does not really fit in with the ruling standards: she is a lesbian, she weighs almost 100 kilograms and she has or has had a relationship with a transsexual man. Just as unusual: Ditto has a cool bluesy voice which she uses masterfully in soulful and danceable punk songs. The mustard comes from old garage rock (The Sonics), riot grrrl bands (Bikini Kill, Huggy Bear), early British punk (The Slits, X-Ray Spex) and The Ramones. The band’s credibility comes from working together with the American cult label K Records and dance remixes by Soulwax (‘Standing In The Way Of Control’) and Tiga. In 2010 and 2011 Gossip experienced a German miracle. The single ‘Heavy Cross’ continuously stayed in the charts for almost two years. Only three songs ever did better. ‘Recording is Fun’ Gossip announced via Facebook in October 2011. The result is 'A Joyful Noise'.